Cloning (somatic cell nuclear transfer, also known as SCNT) involves creating embryos containing stem cells-primordial cells capable of evolving into human tissue that researchers believe could be the key to new disease treatments. But the procedure is controversial because extracting the stem cell involves destroying the embryo, an act that anti-abortion forces compare with murder ("Social" 2082). Human cloning is the asexual reproduction of a human being whose genetic makeup is nearly identical to that of a currently or previously existing individual (Cheshire 1010).
             Congress is debating whether to set new limits on biomedical research by making it illegal to clone a human embryo. But the effort has stalled in the Senate, with lawmakers divided over whether to support cloning for medical research purposes. Research advocates in the chamber want to ban cloning for the purposes of stating a pregnancy but allow the procedure to create potential medical treatments ("Social" 2082). Dr. Patrick Dixon says that human cloning should be banned altogether due to health risks, emotional risks, and the risk of abuse of technology.
             Cloning haws been achieved in sheep, cows, mice, cats, rabbits, goats, and pigs. Offspring of these animals have been born normal, but most of them have been born with severe defects ("Fertility" 65). Cloned animals have shown to have a shorter than normal lifespan. The oldest cloned animal, Dolly the sheep, died at six years of age; this age was not close to her natural lifespan. In one experiment, ten out of twelve cloned mice died within 800 days of birth, whereas only one out of seven mice that were produced through natural reproduction died within the same amount to time. Autopsies on six of the cloned mice found that four of them had liver damage, and all six had sever pneumonia, suggesting that their immune systems were weaker then those of normal mice. The rema...